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4.6: Global Patterns of Sensible and Latent Heat Transfer

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    Sensible heat transfer (H) into the air is dependent on the temperature gradient between the surface and the air above. An examination of the global distribution of sensible heat transfer reveals that it is at a maximum in the tropical and subtropical deserts. Here the high surface temperature conducts much heat into the air above. Sensible heat is lowest near the poles where the surface temperatures are quite cold.

    sensible heat_jan-dec_small.png
    Figure \(\PageIndex{1}\): Global distribution of sensible heat. (Image provided by the NOAA-CIRES Climate Diagnostics Center, Boulder, Colorado, from their Web site at https://www.cdc.noaa.gov/.)

    The maximum amount of latent heat transfer (LE) occurs over the subtropical oceans where there is a maximum of net radiation and, of course, water to evaporate. The lowest rates occur in desert locations. Even though there is ample available energy for LE, there is little water present. Off the east coast of midlatitude continents like North America, we'll find very high rates of latent energy transfer into the air. Here, dry air blows off the continent and over the warm ocean current that flows along the coast. This produces a large moisture gradient between the surface and the air above that induces evaporation and LE transfer.

    latent heat_jan-dec_small.png
    Figure \(\PageIndex{2}\): Global distribution of latent heat. (Image provided by the NOAA-CIRES Climate Diagnostics Center, Boulder, Colorado, from their Web site at https://www.cdc.noaa.gov/.)

    This page titled 4.6: Global Patterns of Sensible and Latent Heat Transfer is shared under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Michael E. Ritter (The Physical Environment) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.